Power system for combined gathering and loading machines



Aug. 11, 1936. M, R T EN 2,050,982

POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINES Filed June 12,1935 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 a a a INVENTOR vi-IINAR MARENTZEN,

ATTORNEY 6' E. M. ARENTZEN 2,050,932

POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINES Filed June 12,1955 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 I l I l I I l l l I :2 ATTORNEY Aug. 11, 1936. E.M. ARENTZEN POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINESFiled June 12, 1935 e Sheets-Shet s W QR - INVENTOfi m Z Y T E N N E R ew A m fi Mm Aug. 11, 1936;

E. M. ARENTZEN POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINES-Filed June 12, 1935- 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 1 H SQQO O. Q

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INVENTQ'R EINAF? MARENTZEN ATTORNEY Aug. 11, 1936. E. M. ARENTZEN2,050,932

POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINES Filed June 12.1935 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 ARENTZEN,

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POWER SYSTEM FOR COMBINED GATHERING AND LOADING MACHINES Filed June 12,1935 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 A F WN M mm MEWEWWE WWQIENNR INVENTO'R EmmaNLARENTZEN ATTORNEY NEQE QPE 2am dictum A $3EBU=G kmuxm mac 298 :J W

7 a m m A A W m Ema h hl o uh wkuvgfflkkiw .qiwu m? w N m m CE: m m a nEma 35mm mm 2E3 236 mmflikwhcu m uzfiuwfik me C with. GE... E=Z .wuzqmmmh3g0 mwwm m 1. l g H A w a H. N F A Q m a a A Nu-F whim :1L$ E EQEQ 152%? E. A @mohoi emu: mm A WKOPOE GZEUTCKQ Q TL a 1J1. 7 a N QGWR withQEQ N a 1 \h\ Q 4 L VO w E w A m Q Q N m .N N A WkEoS kwfiikmhtu to\ mmacros zorruqmk k 7 G r Patented Aug. 1 1, 1936 POWER SYSTEM FORCOEBHNED GAMB- AND ILGADING momma Einar M. Arentzcn, Franklin, Pa,assignmto Joy Manufacturing Company,

poration oi Delaware Application June 12, 1935, Serial No. 26,182

11 Glaima.

of this type for use in the coal mining industry,

and which is adapted to travel upon the floor of a mine or other surfacefrom which material is to be gathered; to gather said material as themachine travels and to convey and deliver same to a point rearwardly of.the machine. Such a machine, in order to attain a maximum of efficiency,utility, and practical accomplishment, must be supplied with anautomotive, tractive mechanism, whereby the gathering head may be movedforwardly, maneuvered laterally in either direction, retracted from thematerial upon which it is operating. In case the coal or other materialhas been blasted or otherwise loosened, thus adapting it to feed bygravity to the gathering head, and when an obstruction or unwieldy massof material is encountered, the tractive elements of the power systemmust be capable of being quickly stopped, reversed or swerved laterallyinto the most effective gathering position.

As an example of the state of the art which has thus fa: been attainedin machines of this class, reference is made to U. S. Patent No.1,619,268, dated March 1, 1927.

The zxachineto which this patent relates is equippwith one motor as itsdriving power for all the oerative sub-organizations, including the thegathering, and the conveying deid tractive devices being supplied with ac. ial gear and a brake mechanism whereby steering functions areaccomplished.

the object of this invention to supply a stem for machines of this classwhereby iacilityand speed of operation, increased a reduction of powerrequirement, and a wid ield of use, especially in thinner seams of coal,2. attainable.

ticular construction and manner in which of these objects is attainedwill be pointed out in due order in the following speciflcation, and isfully illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. l is a schematic view of said power system.

Fig.2 is a plan view, which upon one side, shows one side of thegathering and conveying organization removed to illustrate the oppositeside of the truck thereunder.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the adjacent side of Fig. 2.

Fi 4 is a transverse section through the gathering head at the pointindicated by the line Iii- IV of Fig. 2, the gear-box which contains theelevator andgathering arm gears being shown in elevation upon the righthand side; said box and a portion of the gearing therein being shown incentral, vertical section upon the left hand side of this view.

Fig. 5 is a right side view of the gathering apron with a portion of thecorresponding gearbox shown in vertical section.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section on line VIVI of Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is a. side elevation of the combined gear and sprocket whichdrives the caterpillar traction chain, and a half-section and half sideview of the 15 tains the four-point, reversing, two-drum controllersrelating to the two independently driven motors which drive thetractive' organizations respectively, a portion of the cover beingremoved to reveal underlying details to view; other parts of this figureare drawn in section to expose to view the two shafts whereby the drumsof these 7 controllers are respectively operated.

Fig. 10 is a wiring diagram showing in detail 30 the wiring system forthe four motors which constitute the power system of this invention.

Fig. 11 is a. symbolic wiring diagram oi the four-point, reversing,right hand, tractor-drum detail. 35

Fig. 12 is a symbolic, electrical wiring diagram of the head motors,which are adapted to series start and parallel run.

The conveyor shown in the drawings is clearly illustrated in U. 3.Patent No. 1,785,402; dated December 16, 1930.

The power system illustrated in said drawings embraces the details whichare arranged andopcrate as follows: I

Referring to Fig. 1, the. right hand end of this 45 view corresponds tothe rearward end of the machine; adjacent this rearward end is mounted aright hand motor I and a left hand motor 2, the axes of which are inalignment and-extend transversely of the chassis in the correspondingside 50 members of which they are respectively mounted and rigidlycarried; these motors are equipped with self-contained speed-reducinggearing, and are adapted, by means of suitable, individual combinedswitch and drum-controllers to be int5 dependently operated in eitherthe same or in opposite directions. The power-delivery shaft 3 of motorI extends outwardly from the outer end of the motor casing and hasrigidly aflixed thereto a pinion 4, adapted to mesh with and to directlydrive a gear-sprocket wheel 5, which in turn serves as a sprocket todrive a caterpillar tractive mechanism or chain 6.

In like manner, the outer end I of the powerdelivery shaft of motor 2extends outwardly from the casing of this motor and has rigidly afllxedthereto a pinion 8 arranged in mesh with a gear-sprocket wheel 9, which,in turn engages with and drives the caterpillar chain It. In Fig. 1 of'the drawings, the outer end of the motor casing is shown in central,longitudinal section for the purpose of exposing the speed-reducinggearing to view. Inasmuch as such self contained speed-reducing gearingis not new, and is well known to electrical engineers, a description ofthe details thereof is deemed unnecessary.

Said gear-sprocket wheels are each carried by their respective sidemembers H and [2 of the chassis', as clearly shown in Fig. 6. From theseII are employed; these motors are arranged in,

parallel relation, their axes extending longitudinally of the chassisand transversely to, the axes of said traction motors I and 2, one ateach side v of the gathering head; they are interconnected for jointoperation in a manner which will pres ently be set forth, so that theyoperate in coordinated unisoni because of this characteristic,corresponding members of this power organization will be referred to -byidentical reference letters.

The forward end of the power-delivery shaft l8,-see Fig. 5,-extendsthrough the motor casing and is connected by means of a suitablecoupling I! to a bevel pinion 2!! which meshes with and drives a bevelgear 2|, to the upwardly-extending end of-a stubshaft 22 of which, isoperatively, rigidly mounted a crank-disk 23; this disk is equipped withan upwardly-extending crank pin 24 for engagement with and actuation ofa gathering arm 25. Said gear and pinion are suitably enclosed in a gearcasing 26, in which is mounted a second bevel pinion 21 that meshes withand is driven by said gear 2|; the stub shaft 28 of this pinion,see Fig.4,-is disposed inwardly toward the center-of the machine at an angle ofdegrees to the axis of pinion. 20, and

operatively engages a;;transversely-extending hol-- low shaft 23-whichformed integrally therewith a sprocket 30,."which is adapted to drivethe conveyor chain 3| and the thereto attached flights 32,see Fig. 1;this conveyor chainence will now be made to the electrical motors andthe method and system of their operation and control.

- to turn pivotaflly, the pivotal point being inter- All four of themotors employed are substantially identical in construction and powerrating, and for the purposes of this specification it may be stated byway of illustration, that a' 250 volt, direct current is used, which issupplied by a 5 trailing cable 32, connected to and leading from anysuitable source of current.

The service end of said trailing cable 32 enters the casing 33 of asimple drum switch which is adapted by means of a starting switch 35 toso control the current passing therefrom, through the conductors 34, 34to the gathering head motors l1, II, that series starting of said motorsis caused and thereafter parallel operation of the motors takes up theirload operation.

A conductor 36 leads from said casing 33 to the casing 31*of afour-point, reversing drum controller of well known construction, inwhich said current is controlled and through which it passes asindicated in the wiring diagrams of 20 Figs. 8, 10 and 11; from saidcasing, a conductor 38,-see Fig. 1,leads to each traction motor I and 2.

Referring especially to Fig. 9 of the drawings, it isshown that thecontroller drums R, L, are selectively operable at will, in eitherdirection, also separately, either inthe same direction orreverselybymeans of the levers R, L', these levers being shown in Figs. 1, 3, and6.

Within the off-set chamber 39 of the casing 31 are mounted the sprocketsR", L"; sprocket R is mounted upon a rotative hollow shaft 40,

which extends transversely of the chassis and axially through the axlell of the sprocket 5; to the outer end of this shaft is actuativelysecured said lever R; the sprocket L is rigidly attached to the solidshaft 42 which extends.

through said hollow shaft 40, and is equipped at its outer projectingend with an' actuativelyattached lever L. Said levers and the switch 35are in such proximity to each other as to be readily, simultaneouslymanipulated by the operator of the machine when standing at anintermediate point.

Referring to Fig. 3 or 6, when said levers L and R are in verticalposition, the current is shut off; when they are actuated rearwardly,the machine runs in a corresponding direction; when they are actuatedinto their forward position, the machine is propelled in the forwarddirection;

as previously stated, the levers may be moved in oppositedirections-which is termed the per cent steering direction, and themachine is caused mediate the center point, both laterally and 55longitudinally of the caterpillar treads, and when either lever ,ismoved (singly) in either direction,

a, 50 per cent steerage results.

The electrical connections and circuits are so arranged in this tractionmotor system that the motors may be operated either in unison, as whenthe tractive elements are prop'elling the machine either directly aheador rearwardly; they may be operated separatel'y a's when the machine isbeing turned by one tractive element, the

other element being the-pivotal point, one twotive element may beoperated in one direction, a and the other element reversely thereto, aswhen the inachine is being thus turned and the pivotal point isintermediate said elements; in the 70 dirigible operation of theloader,as when laterally directing the gathering head to the .right or to theleft, into actuative gathering relation to the material being gathered,the motors and their respective tractive organization may be selec- 75tively operated in either direction-whereby the maneuvering of thegathering arms into gathering relation to said material is greatlyfacilitated. Said facilitation is due to the fact that, if the gatheringhead is to be moved to the right, this may be done by operating eitherthe right hand tractive equipment in the rearward direction, or the lefthand tractive equipment in the forward 'direction, inwhich case one ofsaid organizations will be inactive, and the gathering head in therespective cases will'be caused to occupy a different position relativeto the material to be gathered. Dirigibillty of the loader whentraveling about the mine; from place to place,a function which is aptlytermed flitting,is accomplished with a high degree of facility,flexibility, and accuracy as to the objective positioning point.

' Having pointed out the mode of operation of my improved power system,it is in order to state the novel and improved advantages attainedthereby, which are:

1. Saving of both time and power and greater ease and accuracy ofplacement in negotiating the gathering head of the machine bothlaterally and longitudinally into gathering relation to the material tobe gathered.

2. The elimination of difierential gearing and its necessarilyassociated brake accompaniment, heretofore used in causing the steeringof automotive loading machines, and to secure a consequentmaterialreduction of power in the performance of this function.

3. The production of a much lower loading machine by the use ofaplui'allty of small motors,

.and the consequent possibility of operating in thinner seams of coalfrom which mechanical loading has heretofore been excluded. I

4. A decided simplification of transmissive equipment and reduction ofoccupied space by the incorporation of speed-reducing and transmissivegears within the casing of the motor.

5. A greater degree of accessibility, especially to the gatheringmotors, by their transferral from within the frame of the chassis to theouter, lateral limits of the gathering head.

6. A greater simplicity, accessibility, ease and certainty ofmanipulation of the control levers.

7. A much more uniform distribution of operative strains throughout thewhole structure of the machine, which is attained through thesymmetrical arrangement of the four motors with respect to the fore andaft axis of the machine, and the fact that all of said motors aredisposed below the line of travel of the conveyor flight.

I claim the following: i e

i 1. In a combined gathering and conveying machine of the type whichincludes a chassis frame, a. tractive mechanism of the caterpillar" typeon each side thereof including a driving procket in direct-drivingrelation with the chain thereof, a conveyor mounted upon said chassisframe and extending rearwardly to provide a delivery section; and agathering organization arranged at each side of and adapted to movematerial onto the forward end of said conveyor, each -88theringorganization including a driving gear therefor and said conveyorhaving adriving member driven jointly by the driving gears of said gatheringorganizations, the combination therewith of a power system for saidcombined gathering and conveying machine whose motive mechanism iscomposed of four electrical motor units, two 'of said motor units beingdisposed adjacent and directly connected to said driving.

sprockets and two of said motor units being disposed adjacent anddirectly connected to the driving gears of said gathering organizations.

2. A combined gathering and conveying machine according to claim 1wherein the four motor units are symmetrically arranged with respect tothe fore and aft axis of the machine.

3. A combined gathering and conveying ma-.

chine according to claim 1 wherein each of said four motor unitsincludes a driving shaft and a gear mounted thereon coaxially with themotor and in mesh with a drivingsprocket of said tractive mechanisms ora driving gear of said gathering organizations.

4. A combined gathering and conveying machine according to claim 1wherein each of said four motor units is a self contained unit composedof a. motor and a train of reducing gears contained within a commoncasing.

5. A combined gathering and conveying machine according to claim 1wherein .all of said four .motor units are alike in structure and size.

6. A combined gathering and conveying machine according toclaim 1wherein the two mo- '7. A combined gathering and conveying machineaccording to claim 1 wherein the two motor units connected to saiddriving sprockets are aligned horizontally and the two motor unitsconnected to said driving gears for the gathering organizations havetheir axis disposed atright angles to said first named motors.

8. A combined gathering and conveying machine according to claim 1wherein all four motor units are disposed below the level of saidconveyor.

9. A combined gathering and conveying machine according to claim 1wherein the two motor units connected to said driving sprockets arehorizontally aligned and disposed below the level of said conveyor andthe-two motor units con-- nected to said driving gears for the gatheringorganizations have their axis at right angles to said first named-motorsand disposed below the level of said-conveyor.

10. A. combined gathering and conveying mative control mechanism forrotating either or both of said motors in forward-or reverse directions,or stopping the same.

